Almost is not always good enough. How many times have you gotten a project 95% complete, only to realize that you "can't get there from here"? The tools you chose didn't quite give you everything you needed? For OPC DataHub users, that final obstacle is often overcome by DataHub scripting.

As more and more users discover the power of DataHub scripting, we have collected a number of scripts that have proven their value, and now offer them as samples of what is possible. For example, with these scripts you can:

• Write data to CSV files
• Track point quality
• Monitor point values
• Configure an OPC server connection based on a CSV file
• And more...

These scripts are available now in the DataHub documentation, and these and more will be added to the archives of future releases of the OPC DataHub.

Takebishi Corporation, with head office in Kyoto, Japan, is a leading electrical and electronics trading company that also develops hardware devices and software, including a line of OPC servers for PLCs, numeric controllers, and machine vision systems. Takebishi's latest DeviceXPlorer x64 OPC server demonstrates preeminent performance in the 64-bit Windows environment, by supporting applications over 4 GB in size and offering such features as the ability to change display languages during run-time.

"The OPC DataHub extends the functionality of our OPC servers," said Hiroshi Okagaki, Manager of the Engineering Department of Takebishi's Machinery and Electric Machine Division. "Once our customers learn what the OPC DataHub can do for them, they see more clearly the value of using OPC."

The OPC DataHub lets you make direct connections between OPC servers, so that a change in one piece of equipment can be communicated directly to another. With a few clicks of the mouse you can link OPC tags, or bridge other data sources into a single cohesive group.

Because the OPC DataHub integrates bridging with its other capabilities, you can:

• Connect OPC Servers on the same computer or over a network connection.
• Scale or modify the value of a data point as it passes through the OPC DataHub.
• Define complex relationships between points in code, with a script.

And because the OPC DataHub connects to each OPC server on a separate thread, multiple OPC bridge connections will not block each other. A slow-to-respond OPC server on one bridge will not cause delays for other OPC server bridges.